Chapter 12 - Life or Death? The Mysterious Baby Inside the Egg Appears Again
Now that the bandit was dead, John's plan to get information went down the drain , now they had to be quick in making a decision, the bandits inside the cabin must have surely noticed that something must be wrong outside.
John had something in mind: first, escape as quickly as possible and call someone at the castle to deal with the situation. Second, enter the cabin and launch a surprise attack and rescue the prisoners. In the first case, it wouldn't be possible, since one of them is dead as soon as they are discovered, they wouldn't wait, but the bandits would leave immediately. In the second case, it would be very dangerous, but they would have a chance .
***
Inside the cabin.
Some time passed and the bandit that was sent still hadn't returned, the boss's brow was furrowed, he could feel something strange in the air.
— You three , go take a look.
The three bandits obeyed and left the hut, one holding a sword and the other two each holding a spear. The chief gathered the two prisoners, preparing to leave at any moment. If something unexpected happened, he would abandon his bandits and leave with the two women. After all, for the chief, honor was for fools.
***
John made his decision, they face the bandits together, even if the two of them couldn't win, they would still be able to escape relying on their speed, Alex agreed to face them, but when John mentioned running away, he made a bad face, but in the end he still agreed, Alex didn't fear for his life, but the life of his young lord must be preserved no matter what .
John looked around. He knew that going into a fight where the opponents' strength was unknown, it was best to be able to rely on the terrain at his disposal; this would be an advantage both in fighting and in fleeing. It took him only a moment to familiarize himself with the terrain. He saw some old barrels filled with water scattered everywhere. He could also see a bare tree. He could use his speed and agility to move between the barrels and the tree, and also use the alleyway of the other cabin to restrict his opponent's movement.
John asked Isa to hide in an empty barrel.
— Iza, you stay here and don't leave for anything. Unless I call you, you must not leave. They still don't know where you are; the only one who knew is dead.
Iza nodded, got into the barrel and said.
— John, Alex , be careful.
"Don't worry, we'll be careful," John said, and almost at the same time Alex spoke too.
— You don't need to worry.
The two hid behind the tree, Alex remained with the stake, John took the old sword of the bandit who was lying dead, they left the bandit's corpse to be discovered at first sight.
John saw the cabin door open and three bandits came out of it, he held the sword tightly in his hand, his heart was beating faster and faster, he forced himself to calm down by taking a deep breath, he looked at Alex and saw the anxiety in his eyes, but there was no fear in them.
John fixed his eyes on the three bandits, they didn't look impressive at all, they just seemed a little stronger than the bandit he killed, the bandits saw the body of their companion lying on the ground, they approached, the bandit holding the sword bent down and felt his companion's pulse and came to the conclusion that he was dead, John heard him saying.
— He's dead, Chip will inform Chief Cancer and I will try to find who did this. If...
The bandit's back was to the tree. Before the bandit could finish, Alex, with his stake firmly in hand, leaped toward the bandit holding the sword. The bandit was crouched low. Alex aimed for the bandit's head, aiming to take him down with just one blow, just as John had done with the previous bandit. Alex held nothing back; he used all his strength in this blow. The bandit felt a cold wind coming from behind, and without thinking, he raised his sword.
Beng .
The sound of metal clashing rang out. Alex struck the bandit's sword with the stake. Because he was receiving the blow while not standing up, the bandit lost his balance and fell backward, nearly dropping his sword. The bandit's hand was numb, the stake was heavy. Alex saw his opportunity and was about to attack again, but the two bandits lunged at him with their spears.
Alex blocked a spear with his stake and when the other spear was about to hit him he dodged it and jumped back away from the two, but they didn't want to give Alex room to breathe, they chased and shot again.
The sword-wielding bandit who had been knocked down by Alex got up and tried to rejoin his companions. When he felt something behind him again, he turned quickly and saw a sword coming toward his head. He jumped back. The downward sword strike aimed at the bandit's head only slightly injured his left arm, leaving a light, superficial cut on his shoulder.
— Who the hell are you?
The bandit asked, he couldn't understand why two children were aiming for his head. He had almost been killed twice today. The bandit was angry, but he was also cautious. He had sensed the strength of the two children from the previous exchange. No matter the stake or the sword, they both had strength compared to him. How is this possible? They are just children, how can they be so strong?
John saw that his surprise attack didn't work as it should, he felt discouraged, he tried again, using all his strength John launched two blows aimed at the neck and chest, but both were easily blocked, the bandit was more experienced using the sword compared to John, he saw the bandit smiling coldly.
— Hahaha Hahaha , you children will meet your deaths. You must be the children of some nobles preparing for your first evolution, very well since you only have strength and no experience, it will be fitting for you to die at my hands today.
John felt a chill at the bandit's sinister laughter. A V-shaped sword flew toward John. He didn't try to block it, just dodged to the left, and the sword hit a barrel full of water. The bandit's sword got stuck, and John saw his chance to take his opponent's life. John slashed his sword toward the bandit's head, as he struggled to remove his stuck sword, just as the sword was about to hit the bandit's neck.
Beng
Joni's sword hit another sword, he moved away after the blow and saw another burly bandit, it wasn't any of the three.
— How can you not deal with mere children.
The bandit chief spoke to his men.
— Boss, these kids are strong.
The bandits who had been fighting Alex ran back to stand alongside their comrades. Alex also stood beside John. The lead bandit asked again, this time to Alex and John.
— Who are you children?
John replied with a smile on his face, although it was four against two he was not worried, after the previous exchanges he could estimate the strength of the opponents.
— Who we are doesn't matter.
John pointed to the wooden cabin.
— I want them. If you give them to us, I considered letting you live.
John was still scared, but he felt his adrenaline rising with tension, he was confident that he could take care of the four of them with Alex's help.
— Hahaha , hahahahahahahaha .
— Hahahahahahahaha
— Hahahahahahahaha
Four bursts of laughter rang out simultaneously. The bandit leader spoke with a distorted smile on his face.
— You are good seeds, how about you become my servants and who knows, in the future you will be powerful mercenaries under my flag.
John thought it was a total joke, that he, the son of a lord, had become the servant of a mere mercenary, he pointed his sword and spoke coldly.
"Leave or die, you will not lead the wolf family while I am here. You are not qualified to become my servants, as I could be yours."
"Foolish, arrogant children. I only spoke to you to see if anyone else was hiding, since there isn't, but no one is going to finish you off and get you out of here any time soon. I don't think I caught the little girl either, but they were satisfied with both of them."
John's heart sank, there was still someone hiding behind the scenes, his smile and confidence disappeared, with a look full of fear apparent on his face, he asked.
— Who are they? Who will be satisfied?
The boss's laughter became even more sinister and a murderous intent filled the air. He must have killed countless people to have such murderous intent. The boss spoke.
— Scared now? Arrogant child, since you're going to die anyway, it doesn't matter, I'll tell you everything.
The boss laughed, but a bit like a typical villain, and spilled the beans.
— We are the true servants of the mercenaries, thick veins. They have two gold mercenaries.
Alex, who had been silent the whole time until now, finally spoke with a serious look.
—The thick-veined mercenaries were expelled from Novo Redondo. What are they doing here? And what do they want with this werewolf family?
The boss spoke as if he were talking to a corpse.
"Yes, this sector, but they've sent three representatives to deal with these wolves. The wolf family will be sent to headquarters in Evans' territory."
The boss continued his laughter. John looked at Alex and asked softly.
— What's with the thick-veined mercenaries?
Alex replied quietly.
— I'll explain later that we have to get rid of them as quickly as possible. If we wait any longer, they'll send a primal being and it will be the end of us .
certainty .
John nodded, he then shouted.
— ISA , run, go help your family, we'll take care of them.
Isa, who had been hiding in a barrel the whole time, heard John's words and jumped out of the barrel and started running toward the cabin. The bandit leader was startled, but when he saw it was just the girl he'd been waiting for, joy welled up in his heart. He quickly tried to run after her, but John stopped him, positioning himself in front of him.
— Where do you think you're going? I'm your opponent. John spoke.
- Child , I'm curious, what gives you so much confidence? If even before I joined the battle you couldn't defeat my men. Now with me, do you think you'd have a chance ?
John and Alex looked at each other and burst out laughing.
— You idiot, do you really think your band of bandits are equals to us?
The boss and his thugs got into a fight, they clearly had the upper hand, they thought it was a trick, that's right, he's bluffing, the boss thought. John continued speaking showing his disdain.
— At first I was worried that you, the boss, wouldn't come out, but now that you're here outside we can fight without worrying about hostages.
John played the villain and revealed his entire plan. He was worried about two things in particular. First, if the bandits were much stronger than the two of them, they would use their speed to escape. So, they hid Isa in the barrel; she would be safe until they returned with reinforcements. Second, if they were as strong as the bandits, they had to put themselves in a disadvantageous position to lure out the perpetrator.
John knew from the beginning that the boss would stay inside the cabin, in his past life he had seen countless bandit bosses use their subordinates to test the waters, if the opponent was weak the boss would appear and take care of the intruders personally, but if the intruder was strong the boss would use his subordinates to buy time so he could escape.
That's why John and Alex used all their strength but didn't use their speed and agility, between them and the Bandits they were practically on the same level, but because of the difference in race, the iron tails had senses and innate strength above humans, this was apparent before evolution.
Alex and John had the upper hand, but they stalled until the boss showed up so Isa could go free her family while they defeated the bandits. John was scared and would have fled if he couldn't handle the bandits, but since he was capable of handling these scum, he didn't hesitate to attack.
While this takes a few lines to describe, it actually only took a few moments. ISA had reached the door by then and successfully entered the cabin. John looked at Alex beside him and spoke.
— Let's finish them off
.
Alex smiled and said.
— Let's go.
So the two of them launched a joint attack.
John took the chieftain and the sword-wielding bandit, Alex took the two spear-wielding bandits, and the fight resumed. Now both Alex and John were using everything they had at their disposal: speed, strength, and agility—all their strengths were on display. John used his speed to dodge the swords and launch counterattacks, while Alex used his speed to dodge his opponents' attacks. He stayed behind the barrels to shorten the range of the mud, allowing him to safely approach and counterattack.
John parried a sword blow from his opponent and stepped away.
- Where do you think you're going? The boss growled angrily.
After walking away for a while, John closed his eyes and vaguely remembered the mandatory body training from his past life. In Asia, their agents had their own martial arts for defense. Even as an agent belonging to intelligence, John was still required to learn it to the basic level.
John opened his eyes just as two swords headed, one towards his neck and the other towards his abdomen.
Woxim
Woxim
With precise yet simple movements, John dodged the two swords. The two bandits were stunned. Until a moment ago, John hadn't used any techniques, relying solely on his speed to evade the attacks. But now, he dodged with such ease that they couldn't comprehend. The two attacked a few more times, but the result was the same.
In Asia, the art of compound movement was mandatory for all agents, and John was no exception. In his view, the bandits' movements were slow; he simply needed to move at the right time to dodge their attacks. The trick was in the moment of reaction, which is why he easily dodged the swords aimed at his life.
The chief, furious at not being able to land a blow, threw his head back and, disregarding his defense, struck with his sword, aiming for John's heart. The sword was heading for his heart, but John didn't move. He waited until it was only inches away from piercing his skin. Then he shifted his body slightly to the right. The sword pierced his clothes, but left no scratch on his skin.
John took advantage of the opening and counterattacked with a crescent -shaped downward thrust. Jon 's sword sliced deep from his left shoulder, passed through his chest, and only stopped when the sword reached his abdomen. By the time the other bandit tried to parry John's attack, it was too late; the other bandit's sword nearly connected, but John used his size to his advantage to dodge the attack.
Now John is fighting two wounded men, his advantage growing even more after their movements became less fluid as time passed. John lures them both to the tree, where he hid his stake. He ran to the stake and grabbed it with his left hand, then threw it with all his strength. The bandit leader was behind him and wasn't the target of the stake; the target was the other opponent, who was slightly wounded in the shoulder.
The bandit saw the stake coming, he used his sword to defend himself, he was going to dodge but as it came very fast he preferred to use the sword to block the attack, big mistake John thought, he used all his speed at the exact moment the bandit defended himself from the stake a sword passed through his neck.
Swim
John was so fast that he cut and stopped behind the bandit.
The bandit turned to look directly at John's back before taking any step, he grabbed his neck and as if someone opened a tap, coagulated blood leaked from the wound, he knelt down and dropped the sword, he tried to cover the wound with both hands, a look of disbelief was on his face
eyes .
Bake
The bandit fell to the ground, dead. The chief saw this and tried with all his might to flee. He tried to run, knowing he was no match for the child in front of him. John saw the bandit running, but he didn't chase him. He bent down and picked up his dead opponent's sword, throwing it with all his might. The sword flew and pierced the chief's neck.
Croft
The sword entered from the back and got stuck in the neck, the bandit fell to the ground dead.
Yes, the mournful sigh came from John, relief and remorse.
John was feeling remorseful. He had just killed people. He was psychologically depressed. He knew it was kill or be killed, but even so, he felt bad. He didn't know why he was feeling this way. He had killed before in his past life. He concluded it was because of the blood gushing from the bodies. In his past life, he just aimed and pulled the trigger.
Lex also handled her opponents well , when John saw Alex's opponents dead on the ground he sighed and tried to compose himself, but when he saw Alex John smiled, this was because Alex was vomiting his face was pale threads of tears were running down his face, John laughed but it didn't bother him for Alex it was his first time.
This world is cruel, here children learn to kill before they even lose their virginity, John felt sorry for him and Alex, although he lost his virginity in his past life this body is still virgin.
After a while, Alex calmed down. They wanted to get out of there as quickly as possible, even before going to see Iza and her family.
Pa pa shovel shovel
Pa pa shovel shovel shovel shovel shovel
A round of applause echoed, John and Alex looked for where they heard it, but they couldn't identify where the applause was coming from. Suddenly, beyond the applause, footsteps sounded.
A bandit appeared before the two Alex and John, the bandit stopped applauding, looked coldly and asked.
— Did you kill my servants?
With just these words, both Alex and John felt a chill, their hearts began to beat faster, sweat ran down their faces, they began to tremble with fear, it wasn't cowardice, it was instinctive, it was due to the classification of life.
The bandit before them is an evolved being, a level 2 primary being. John and Alex are normal in front of someone like that, they felt like ants in front of an elephant.
***
In the sea of the soul.
In John's soul, a calm sea spread out everywhere, a clear sea with waters reflecting the blue sky. There was no sense of direction in this sea, the blue sky was even stranger, there was no sun, but it felt as if there were. Above the waters, a giant egg was floating; looking inside, a baby could be seen with its eyes closed.
When John's emotions turned into pure instinctive fear, the baby's eyes inside the egg opened, strangely the baby could see everything around John's body, but unlike everyone else who could see the world in color, the baby could only see three colors: white, black and gray.
Continued.
In the next chapter Alex and John will dance with death
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